Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[ChicoryBlue]

I know. Very pricy, which is why I am hesitant. I think a nice wood shed could work, but we’d have to install windows and ventilation. Hubby is a contractor and has the skill to build something beautiful. But he doesn’t want to and something quick, as long as it’s big enough and nice enough, would alleviate some moving stress.

You could use a wooden shed easily for now, especially in your climate, because you could take one of the man-door frames, replace the filler boards with hardware cloth and have plenty of light & ventilation immediately (you could do the top halves of two doors instead). Then put in a table (functions as poop board) with a roost on a couple of small blocks fastened to the top. Stack milk crates for nest boxes under the table or on the side. Just an idea, I read a couple of articles or a thread or two here on BYC about renovating a Rubbermaid double-wall shed this way. Wood is better protection against chewing predators though.

 

[BY Bob]

Hawk Attack
As most of you know, I have a lot of chickens. I am out with them when free ranging, but it is impossible to be 'near' them all as each group tends to go to a different spot.

So, I was hanging around with the group that is in the most unprotected area...when I hear a "Whummmp" (Sounded like a cow-patty hitting a wooden wall.) Then, a fruckus breaks out from the group near the house, with hens running & squawking bloody murder!. I go running over to that space (thinking the neighbor's dog was out & chasing them.) Nooooo, as I arrive (out of breath) a 'chicken'; flushes from the dense yew shrub against the house - I look down under the shrub, and there is a hen 'dust-bathing'. I look back in the direction the flushed 'hen' went and see our resident hawk sitting on a limb not 30 feet from me. I ran at ?her? yelling & waving my arms and she took off.

Back to the hen under the shrub..I could see blood dripping from her mouth, but she was clearly frightened and wouldn't let me near her. Finally got hubby to help and caught her. After cleaning her up, it appears this is her damage:
Scraped/abrasion on skin @ base of left side of beak and just below eye - minor. Blood from inside the mouth leaking out both sides of beak and dripping from cheek puffs appeared to be from a talon piercing the right 'cheek' through into the mouth, and she has an abrasion/cut around her right nare. After cleaning her up best I could and applying triple antibiotic ointment to exterior, she seemed okay but still quite frightened (she was anything but cooperative!). She will be fine if she doesn't get an infection. I am concerned about the inside of her mouth getting infected...but outside has been flushed well & again, anti-biotic cream....

Didn't have camera with me then, but older, poor pick of hawks (I am pretty sure they are Cooper's)
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My Americauna hen, after clean-up: (it was still bleeding slightly)
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Gosh I know that sound all too well. I'm so glad she has survived to this point. Thank goodness.

I would not worry too much about the wound in the mouth. Just keep an eye on it.

 

[ChicoryBlue]

It crossed our mind, but it’s massive and heavy. I don’t think it could be moved without disassembly and reassembly.

Could you pay someone to do that work cheaper than the EZ coop? You're only 7 minutes from your new place.

 

[BY Bob]

Paving bricks, and yes summers here are saunas, hot, hazy and humid, just how I like it - horses and chickens not so much. The flooring already 'sweats' a lot when it's humid, those bricks are darn slippery when damp!

I will likely turn one of my unused stalls into a summer hen house, they are 10x10 and open so I can wrap it in chicken wire to keep out coins, etc, and then still use a big box fan like I do with the horses. Don't know why I didn't think of that at first - duh! It's not like I will be getting any more horses so may as well use the space for my feather babies

We need to see photos when you do the conversion!

 

[BY Bob]

OK: Just before 1:30 or so in the first video, I swear Betty gets close to Sidney, and decides / knows they are friends, no issue, all is good. Betty then decides to go up to Aurora and stretch her wings out right there in Aurora's face, pretty much AT Aurora, and gets a put-down for it. Is that how you all see it?

That is how I see it too!

 

[Ponypoor]

We need to see photos when you do the conversion!

The more I think of it the better I like it. Now if only summer will arrive so I can work without frost nipped fingers!

 

[BY Bob]

These are for @RoyalChick :View attachment 2985790View attachment 2985791
The first 2 are my black sex-link ( BR dad and not sure of mom)
These next 2 are of her 'twin' Raven, Part Marans & part Lavender Orpington (my neighbor's fertile egg, so not related!)

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Raven's has the big, gorgeous brown eyes, and a slight flop to the back of her comb, otherwise they look identical! However, Raven will follow me everywhere - especially into the barn where there might be treats. You can see in the last picture that she hopped up next to the metal feed can while I was replenishing their feeders.

They are beautiful.

 

[BY Bob]

I could see the wound from inside her beak, and it was bleeding both into her mouth/beak AND outside through her muff. It is at the very back of her mouth, so the exterior part of the wound is through her muff, though hard to see the outside damage in person, it was clear it was a through & through since it was bleeding from both sides. With careful parting, I could see the exterior wound, but she was not at all cooperative. (interior wound site was obvious when I could get her to open the beak and hold still for a second!)

Yes, I think she will be fine as long as there is no infection.

You could start baytril now if you had some and head off any infection. I can help with dosing if you want. Just PM me.

 

[BY Bob]

A Polish Present!

One of the Polish laid an egg today! They gathered all of the eggs together into one nest. Check it out!

I took this just in case it is Betty's first egg here!

 

[BY Bob]

A Polish Present!

One of the Polish laid an egg today! They gathered all of the eggs together into one nest. Check it out!

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I took this just in case it is Betty's first egg here!

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@Ribh @MaryJanet @Aussie-Chookmum @LozzyR @micstrachan @ChicoryBlue